Teams including volleyball, flag football and golf suited up for action this past week for Escalon, with the cross country team participating in a training run.
The fall sports season is well underway, with some teams already seeing Trans-Valley League competition and others just getting ready to start the TVL schedule.
FLAG FOOTBALL
An overtime loss and a shutout loss were the results of the two contests for Escalon’s varsity flag football girls this week. They went to Vanden in Fairfield for an Aug. 31 game, losing in overtime, 13-7. Yesenia Marsellis scored the touchdown and extra point for the Lady Cougars.
Wednesday, Sept. 2, they were on the road at Lathrop and fell by a 26-0 final in a tough match.
“We have had some good competition in these preseason matches, but we feel like it will better prepare us for our upcoming league games,” said head coach Danelle Hagen.
The girls were slated to play at Lodi on Sept. 8 with JV at 5:30 p.m. and varsity at 6:30 p.m., with the varsity only taking the home field Thursday, Sept. 10 for a 5:30 p.m. contest hosting Vanguard Prep.
The JV girls were shut out at Vanden, 26-0, to start the week.
“We struggled to get things going on offense, we dropped balls that should have been caught,” said JV head coach Lisa Luis. “They had a mobile quarterback and we struggled pulling flags.”
Wednesday, the girls fell at Lathrop by a 20-7 final.
“We started the game well, Kyla Holback connected with Lauryn Siegel for a touchdown pass and then Holback found Briley Silva for the point after touchdown,” Luis said.
That was the only score they would get, however, though Holback connected with Hadley Casazza on several passes.
“We struggled to pull flags on defense again, but got a defensive spark from Natalia Romero and Evelyn Castaneda,” added Luis.
VOLLEYBALL
There was plenty of volleyball for the varsity girls, as they won two non-league matches and then traveled to Reno for a two-day tournament.
First off, they defeated Gregori, 25-12, 23-25, 25-18 and 25-13 and came back with another 3-1 win over Linden. Scores were 25-20, 25-9, 23-25, 25-18.
Head coach Stephanie Ceja said the girls then played seven games at the Reno tournament.
They fell to Granite Bay 17-25, 20-25; lost to Reno 20-25, 23-25; lost to Woodcreek, 19-25, 16-25 and then came back with a 2-0 win over Oakdale, 25-15, 25-21. They went on to win over Douglas, 25-20, 25-17; defeated McQueen, 25-22, 25-14; and closed out the event with a 2-0 win over Whitney, 25-21, 27-25.
“The girls are playing well, but struggling with finishing matches,” Ceja said. “We love going to this High Sierra Invitational (in Reno) because it’s a great way to get ready for the toughness of the Trans-Valley League.”
Escalon’s JV girls, meanwhile, had a great week, putting two wins on the books.
They beat Gregori in a hard-fought contest, 25-27, 25-22, 16-14.
“Alaina Mancilla had 11 digs, Aubrey Anderson-Castro had 12 assists, and Lainie Harris had 12 kills,” said JV head coach Alyssa Cogburn.
The girls then took the court and swept Linden, 25-16, 25-15. Ryan Killingsworth had six aces, Anderson-Castro added seven assists and Kinsley Villines had five kills.
“Very proud of their mental strength and determination to win this week,” Cogburn added.
For the freshmen, they were winners of their two matches as well.
They topped Gregori on Sept. 1, 25-14, 25-14.
“Olivia Raley had five aces, Evelynn Strong with six digs and seven kills,” freshman head coach Mya Scott said. “Wednesday we beat Linden in two, 25-7 and 25-21.”
Raley once again recorded five aces, Paitynn Russell had four digs, Strong added eight kills and Brooklyn Karp had 11 assists.
GOLF
A busy week for the Lady Cougar golfers saw them take part in the 18-hole Merced Girls Invitational, hosted at Merced Golf and Country Club on Aug. 31.
Five players take the course and teams keep the top four scores.
“It’s a good chance for the girls to play a course with the nice long holes, as well as to work on their conditioning and endurance, since it is an 18-hole tournament,” said head coach Chris Casazza. “Playing and walking 18 holes of golf is no easy feat, especially if you’re more used to playing nine holes.”
A total of 22 schools participated, with 105 golfers. Escalon placed 16th as a team overall and top finishers were Samantha Bruns coming in 46th and Jayci Trimble placing 60th.
“For our team, there were some excellent medium to short range shots that were part of some great scores on some individual holes,” Casazza added. “We also had some struggles, especially on longer holes, as our team does tend to struggle with distance.”
Bruns had a 113, Trimble 120, Areli Herrera, 129; Lori Brown, 130; and Kristina Mendoza, 131, not counted in the team score.
Sept. 1, the girls were on the road at Ripon Golf Club (formerly Jack Tone Golf Course) to play Ripon in TVL action.
“Ripon is an excellent team with very solid golfers in positions one through six,” explained Casazza. “We were able to get three scores in the low 50s, from Samantha, Kristina, and Sofia, but it wasn’t enough to challenge Ripon. It was a decisive win for the Ripon girls, beating us 150-207.”
Scoring for Escalon were Bruns, 50; Mendoza, 51; Sofia Da Silva, 51; and Trimble, 55.
Wednesday, the girls were back on the road and traveled to Sonora for a match at Teleli Golf Course.
“The team was excited for this match because earlier in the week, at the Merced Invitational, we tied Sonora,” Casazza said. “We knew it was going to be a competitive match which is always a lot of fun.”
Escalon battled to get their first league win, 250-256, over Sonora.
“It was a close match, and very dramatic as I watched the scores pop up in real time in the scoring app the girls use,” said the coach. “I was really happy for the girls. Getting that first league win of the season was huge, after a bit of a rough start.”
Bruns paced the effort with a 59, followed by Trimble, 62; Mendoza, 64; Herrera, 65.
Casazza said Teleli, Sonora’s home course, has plenty of elevation changes, making for a challenging course.
“The plus side of the course, is that it is very wide open, and some of our girls noted that it allowed for them to play balls that may have been out of bounds on other courses,” Casazza said. “While playing the round, the girls saw deer, wild turkey, as well as a large flock of Canada geese.”
Thursday, the JV girls hosted Ripon Christian in a JV match and lost, carding a 245 to Ripon’s 207. Natalie Paxman shot a 55, Marissa Miller 60; with Brisa Patino and Alexis Tovar both coming in at 65.
CROSS COUNTRY
Head coach Arend Jones said the team focused on training this past week, with no competition scheduled.
“On Saturday (Sept. 5) the team went up to the Kennedy Meadows to Relief Reservoir trail above Pinecrest,” Jones noted. “It was a fun time hiking up difficult trails to the cool reservoir 1,000 feet above the trail head.”
The cross country runners will have their first Trans-Valley League meet this week, competing at Riverbluff Park in Ceres on Sept. 9 with the first race starting at 5 p.m.
